Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a numerical controller, and more particularly, to a numerical controller for managing machining data, such as machining programs and machining conditions, and results of machining.
Description of the Related Art
There is a technique (e.g., Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-226446) in which a plurality of machine tools of the same type are used for mass production. According to this technique, combinations of machining programs and machining conditions (including parameters, workpiece coordinate systems, etc.) in numerical controllers for the machine tools having performed prototype machining are collectively managed, as shown in FIG. 7, whereby reflection on the other machine tools is facilitated.
Data including machining programs and machining conditions lumped in this manner are generally called “projects”, and a new project is stored in the numerical controller every time machining is performed. Normally, in prototype machining, fine adjustment of the machining programs and conditions is repeated many times so that machining accuracy and time desired by an operator are achieved. Therefore, a plurality of projects are stored in the numerical controller.
In a prototype machining operation, operators repeat the fine adjustment by trial and error to find out appropriate combinations of machining programs and machining conditions of projects. In order to efficiently perform this fine adjustment, the operators must guess where and how to adjust the machining programs and conditions to achieve a desired result.
Although skilled operators can finish the adjustment relatively quickly by making the guess based on their experience, however, unskilled operators must frequently repeat trial and error to ascertain the influence of the content of the adjustment on the machining accuracy and time, thus resulting in the problem of low efficiency. The technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-226446 described above has a problem that information for supporting these operators' operations is not managed, so that it is difficult to understand how the machining accuracy and time are influenced by those projects which are finely adjusted in prototype machining.